Serving tray



Aug. 9, 1960 n N. P. MCLEOD '2,948,391

SERVING TRAY Filed May 28, '1959 United States Patent 4lC) SERVING TRAYNorman I. McLeod, '1114 'W. St. Andrew Place, Santa Ana, Calif.

Filed May 28, 1959, Ser. No. 816,543

`6 Claims. (Cl. 206-.81)

This invention relates to` a combined serving tray and cash receptacledevice for use particularly by waiters and waitresses.

In many eating and drinking establishments the waiters or waitresses whoserve food and beverages also handle and are responsible for the cashinvolved in payment by the patrons and also commonly make change inhandling the matter of payment. In handling such transactions the Waiteror waitress must either make a separate trip to and from the patron to=a cashier or must carry a supply of change in his or her pocket, thelatter expedient being very lawkward and cumbersome and conducive tomaking mistakes.

This cash handling and change making problem is particularly aggravatingand time-.consuming in drive-in establishments where the waiter orwaitress covers a considerable area and where the distance from thecashier to the patron may be very substantial. Furthermore, in handlingdrive-in service there is no table, counter or like surface availablefor temporarily resting the tray or for working upon in writing a foodor beverage check or for use in making change.

The present invention provides a food or beverage serving tray withbuilt-in means for receiving coins and bills, the former sorted as todenomination, with the coin receptacle arranged in the tray in suchmanner as to facilitate removing coins therefrom in making change. Thedevice of the present invention saves a great deal of the waiters orwaitress time, reduces the possibility of error and consequent financialloss to the server or the establishment, and reduces the possibility ofspilling or upsetting food or beverages `due to the awkwardness ofmaking change in the customary manner.

A typical embodiment of the device of the present invention isillustrated in the accompanying drawing and is described in detail inthe following specification. .However, it is to be understood that suchembodiment is by way of example only and that various mechanicalmodifications may be effected without departing from the principles ofthe invention, the scope of which is limited only as defined in theappended claims.

In the drawing:

Fig. l is a general top plan view of one form of the device of thepresent invention;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary view similar to Fig. l showing a lid portion ofthe device in open position;

Fig. 3 is another fragmentary View similar to Figs. l and 2 showing theapparatus in a further opened position; and

Fig. 4 is a cross sectional View on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1 but on anenlarged scale.

Like characters of reference denote like parts throughout the severalfigures of the drawing. The numeral designates generally a tray memberwhich comprises the main body member of the device and which consists ofthe usual at bottom portion 11 and an inclined or flaring marginal wallportion 12 extending thereabout. In the lCC illustrated instance a sheetof cork or the like is shown applied to the upper surface of the bottom11 of the tray as at 13 to provide a friction surface for preventingslipping or sliding of objects resting on the tray.

lReference will now be had to the cash receptacle portion of the deviceof the present invention.` The base member of the receptacle portion isdesignated 15 land comprises a generally rectangular block of materialslotted inwardly from one of its longer edges as indicated at 16 in Fig.3. The slots which are collectively designated 16 are of various widthsto receive coins of various denominations. It will be noted that, in thepreferred form of the invention illustrated herein the bottoms of theslots 16 are formed by the cork or other frictional material 13.

It will further be noted, by reference particularly', to Figs. 3 and 4,that the coin receiving slots 16 open toward and immediately adjacent toone of the slanted or inclined side walls 12 of the tray 10 to which thebase block 15 is attached by cementiug or the like. Block 15 may,incidentally, be of wood or of molded plastic or any other desiredmaterial.

Referring again to the adjacency of the open ends of the slots 16 toinclined wall 12, it will be noted that coins may readily be withdrawnfrom the slots by applying finger pressure to the coins and drawing themforwardly or outwardly of the slots and continuously upwardly along theinclined tray wall 12 as indicated in dot and dash lines at theleft-hand side of Fig. 4. f

An intermediate member designated generally byY th numeral 20 serves adual purpose as a cover member for the coin slots of the block 15 and asa receptacle forfour,- rency. Member 26, in the form illustrated in thedrawing by way of example, comprises a sheet metal base member 21 and aC-shaped biock 22 which is xed to the upper surface of sheet metal basemember 21 and `forms a relatively shallow side walls around three sidesthereof.

At the fourth side, in the present instance the side contiguous with theopen ends of the coin slots 16, the base member 21 is anged upwardly, asat 24 in Figs. 3 and 4,- to form a fourth side war and the compartmentthus dened is adapted to receive currency. A spring clip 25 may beprovided to retain currency therein against accidental dislodgment. Theblock portion 22 of the combined cover member and receptacle 20 ishinged to the upper surface of the base member 15 as indicated at 26 inFig. 4.

The currency compartment thus formed by the cornbined intermediate covermember and receptacle 20 is in turn provided with a cover member 27.'I'he latter is set into a recess formed in the upper surface of theblock 22 and is hinged thereto as at 29. A further spring clip 30 may beprovided at the outside of the ofuter cover member 27, as for holdingorder slips, food and beverage checks, menus or the like.

In gaining access to the coin slots 16 the member 20 and the top covermember 27 will most conveniently be raised as a unit as indicated by thedot and dash showing designated A in Fig. 4.

I claim:

l. In a serving device, a baseplate forming a tray surface and havingoutwardly flaring walls about its margin, and a cash receiving devicesecured to said base plate adjacent to one of said flaring walls, saidreceiving device comprising a base block having a pluality of slotstherein opening toward said one flaring wall and of a width t0 receivecoins of various denominations, a relatively shallow receptacle hingedto said base block at the edge thereof opposite to said one flaring wallto serve as a cover for said coin slots and as an overlying currencyreceiving receptacle, and a top cover member hinged to said receptacle.

2. In a serving device, a base plate forming a tray surl face and havingoutwardly flaring walls about its margin, and a cash receiving devicesecured to said base plate adjacent t one of said flaring Walls, saidreceiving device comprising a base block having a plurality of slotstherein opening toward said one flaring wall and of a width to receivecoins of various denominations, and cover means normally overlying saidcoin slots and hinged to said base block at the edge thereof opposite tosaid one flaring wall for opening movement.

3. In a cash receptacle, a base plate, a coin receiving membercomprising a block having a plurality of slots therein extendinginwardly from an edge thereof and of various widths to accommodate coinsof various denominations, said base plate extending marginally beyondsaid block at the slotted edge thereof and sloping upwardly to formmeans tending to retain coins in said slots but available for removal ofcoins by manual sliding thereof outwardly of a slot and upwardly alongsaid sloping wall, a relatively shallow receptacle hinged to said baseblock at the edge thereof opposite to the sloping marginal portion ofsaid base plate to serve as a cover for said coin slots and as anoverlying currency receiving recptacle, and a top cover member hinged tosaid receptacle.

4. In a cash receptacle, a base plate, a coin receiving membercomprising a block having a plurality of slots therein extendinginwardly from an edge thereof and of various widths to accommodate coinsof various denominations, said base plate extending marginally beyondsaid block at the slotted edge thereof and sloping upwardly to formmeans tending to retain coins in said slots but available for removal ofcoins by manual sliding thereof outwardly of a slot and upwardly alongsaid sloping Wall, and means normally overlying said coin slots andhinged to said base block at the edge thereof opposite to the slopingmarginal portion of said base plate to serve as a cover for said coinslots.

5. In a serving device a generally rectangular base plate forming a traysurface and having outwardly flaring walls about its margin, and agenerally rectangular cash receiving device secured to said base plateadjacent to the flaring Walls at one of the shorter sides of said tray,said receiving device comprising a base block having a plurality ofslots therein opening toward said adjacent flaring Wall and of a widthto receive coins of various denominations, a relatively shallowreceptacle hinged to said base block at the edge thereof opposite tosaid one flaring Wall to serve as a cover for said coin slots and as anoverlying currency receiving receptacle, and a top cover member hingedto said receptacle.

6. In a serving device a generally rectangular base plate forming a traysurface and having outwardly flaring walls about its margin, and agenerally rectangular cash receiving device secured to said base plateadjacent to the flaring wall at one of the shorter sides of said tray,said receiving device comprising a base block having a plurality ofslots therein opening toward said adjacent flaring wall and of a widthto receive coins of various denominations, and cover means normallyoverlying said coin slots and hinged to said base block at the edgethereof opposite to said one aring wall for opening movement.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,385,885 Norris July 26, 1921 2,051,131 `Crow Aug. 18, 1936 2,079,850Gessier May 11, 1937 2,541,890 Shaperkotter ---n Feb. 18, 1951

